'Game of Thrones' Podcast: A Clash of King Whisperers

This week's 'Winter Was Here' podcast focuses on season one, episode five, 'The Wolf and the Lion.'

Long before his lonely, cold ending at Winterfell, Lord Petyr Baelish found himself matching wits with a more like-minded adversary — or at least one with a similarly sharp tongue.

The man in question: none other than Varys the Spider, the Master of Whisperers on King Robert Baratheon's Small Council. As one of the holdovers from the Targaryen regime, Varys was an invaluable player during Robert's reign and very much remains a powerful player in the war for the Iron Throne through seven seasons of Game of Thrones. But before he was advising Daenerys on how best to move forward in her simultaneous wars against Cersei Lannister and the White Walkers, Varys was primarily concerned with installing a different Targaryen on the Iron Throne, with a direct rival across the aisle in the form of Littlefinger.

Varys and Littlefinger's feud begins in the fifth episode of the series, "The Wolf and the Lion," at least as far as the audience sees. Their brewing conflict, not to mention the various truths about Varys seen throughout the episode, are the topics at hand in this week's episode of "Winter Was Here," the Game of Thrones rewatch podcast from Post Show Recaps co-hosts Rob Cesternino (of Survivor and Rob Has a Podcast fame) and THR's Westeros guru Josh Wigler (that's me!), covering every moment of the series in the final offseason before the final six episodes.

Other topics covered during this week's podcast include:

• The conversation between Cersei and Robert that could have averted a war;

• Why HBO should consider Robert's Rebellion as one of the subjects for the developing successor shows;

• The last-minute decision that could have prevented Ned Stark from losing his head;

• How the friendship between Tyrion and Bronn first blossomed;

• The arrival of yet another wonderfully bratty lord in the form of Sweet Robin;

• How the Mountain and the Hound's first fight hypes up the eventual and inevitable Clegane Bowl;

• And more!

Listen to the podcast in the player below:

Make sure you don't miss an episode of "Winter Was Here" by subscribing to the show on iTunes or your podcast catcher of choice. Send in your comments and questions using the podcast's email address got@postshowrecaps.com or our feedback form. Keep checking THR.com/GameOfThrones for news, interviews, theories and more.